Washing symbols
The washtub family tells you whether an item may be washed in water, which kind of cycle is allowed, and the hottest water the label permits. Start with the tub itself, then read every mark inside or underneath it. Temperature and cycle marks answer different questions, so neither one replaces the other.
Washing comes first in the standard five-family label row. That first position sets the starting point for home care: machine wash, hand wash, or do not wash in water. If the rest of the row is unfamiliar, the guide library shows how washing fits with bleach, drying, ironing, and professional care.
- Machine wash, normal You can machine wash this on a normal cycle.
- Machine wash, cold (30°C / 1 dot) Machine wash this in water up to 30°C. In the US this shows as one dot.
- Machine wash, warm (40°C / 2 dots) Machine wash this in water up to 40°C. Two dots in the US.
- Machine wash, hot (50°C / 3 dots) Machine wash this in water up to 50°C. Three dots in the US.
- Machine wash, very hot (60°C / 4 dots) Machine wash this in water up to 60°C. Four dots in the US.
- Machine wash, boil (95°C) Machine wash at up to 95°C on the normal boil-wash process.
- Mild / permanent-press wash One bar means an ISO mild wash with reduced mechanical action. On ASTM/US labels it means permanent press, including a cool-down or cold rinse before reduced spinning.
- Very mild / delicate wash Two bars mean an ISO very mild wash. ASTM/US calls it a delicate or gentle cycle with slow agitation and reduced time.
- Hand wash only Hand wash, not machine wash. ISO has an ambient-water variant (20-30°C) and another marked up to 40°C. An unqualified ASTM/US instruction does not itself mean cool water.
- Do not wash Do not wash this, by machine or by hand. Check the remaining care symbols for any permitted method.
Start with the tub, hand, or cross
A plain machine-wash symbol permits a normal machine cycle. It does not set a particular temperature by itself. Look inside the tub for a number or dots, and look underneath it for one or two bars. Those extra marks can turn a general machine-wash instruction into a temperature limit, a gentler cycle, or both on a complete care label.
A hand in the tub means hand wash, not a gentle machine cycle. It does not impose one universal 'cool water' limit. ISO 3758:2023 distinguishes hand washing at ambient temperature, around 20°C to 30°C, from a maximum-40°C variant. An unqualified US hand-wash instruction can permit water up to 66°C (150°F), but that upper allowance is not a target. Follow the exact variant or wording; when it is unclear, cool water is the conservative choice.
A do-not-wash symbol has a large cross through the tub. That cross forbids washing in water, including hand washing. Read all remaining symbols to find any permitted care route. The crossed tub does not require or authorize professional care by itself.
Dots and degrees set the maximum temperature
ASTM washing symbols used in the US put dots inside the washtub. ISO symbols print a Celsius number in the same area. The cold-wash symbol is one dot on an ASTM label and 30 on an ISO label. Two dots line up with 40, three with 50, and higher marks allow progressively hotter maximums. The wash temperature guide lays out the same scale when you need to compare a machine dial with a tag.
Treat every temperature mark as a ceiling. A warm-wash symbol marked 40 does not require a 40°C cycle, and a four-dot very-hot-wash symbol does not require the hottest choice it permits. You may choose a cooler setting while still staying within that temperature instruction. Do not go hotter than the label shows. The number of dots is never a count of washes, rinses, or cycle steps.
The near-boiling wash symbol sits at the top of this set with 95 on an ISO label or six dots on an ASTM label. It still states a maximum, not a target. Check the complete tub before acting, because a temperature mark can appear with a bar that also limits the cycle action.
Bars under the tub set the cycle action
Bars belong under the washtub, never inside it. No bar means normal machine-wash action. ISO calls one bar a mild process with reduced mechanical action; US terminology calls that level permanent press. ISO calls two bars a very mild process, while the US delicate or gentle cycle specifies slow agitation and reduced time. Count the bars before choosing a cycle, especially when a small tag makes one bar look like the bottom edge of the tub.
A bar does not mean colder water. A dot or printed number inside the tub sets the heat limit, while the bars underneath set the cycle action. Read both when both are present. Choosing a cold normal cycle follows the temperature part of a gentle-cycle symbol but misses its cycle restriction. Choosing a delicate cycle at a temperature above the printed number misses the limit in the other direction.
The hand symbol is separate from this bar scale. Two bars still permit a machine cycle, while a hand in the tub directs you away from machine washing. A large cross is separate again and forbids washing in water. Shape, inner mark, and lower bars each have a fixed job.
How ISO and ASTM washing marks differ
The main regional difference in this family is how temperature is written. ISO 3758 uses Celsius numbers in the tub, while ASTM D5489 uses dots, with more dots allowing a higher maximum. Both systems use bars to reduce process severity, but ISO names mild and very mild processes while US instructions use permanent-press and delicate or gentle terminology. The tub, hand, and prohibition cross keep the same basic roles. The US and international comparison lets you place the temperature versions side by side.
Do not mix the washing dot scale with the dot scales in later families. Dots inside a washtub belong to wash-water temperature. Dots inside a square-and-circle belong to tumble-dryer heat, and dots inside an iron belong to iron temperature. Their location gives the dots their meaning. Reading the outer shape first is more reliable than counting dots before you know which family you are looking at.
Common washing mix-ups
Check the shape and the placement of each mark before acting on a small or faded label.
One bar read as a cool permanent-press wash
A bar sets process severity, not water temperature. ISO calls one bar a mild process with reduced mechanical action; US terminology calls it permanent press. Read the number or dots inside the tub for the temperature maximum.
Two bars reduced to a slow spin
Two bars mean a very mild ISO process. The US delicate or gentle cycle uses slow agitation and reduced time. A slow spin alone does not describe the instruction.
Hand wash replaced with a machine cycle
A hand reaching into the tub directs you to wash by hand. It is not permission to substitute a machine's delicate or hand-wash program.
A crossed tub read as hand wash only
The cross rules out washing in water altogether. Do not replace it with hand washing. Read the remaining care symbols; the crossed tub does not choose a substitute.
Other categories
Questions about washing symbols
- Do wash-temperature dots show a target or a limit?
- They show the maximum temperature the care instruction permits. You can wash cooler. Do not go hotter than the dot count or Celsius number on the label.
- What is the difference between one bar and two bars under a tub?
- ISO calls one bar a mild process and two bars a very mild process. US terminology calls the levels permanent press and delicate or gentle. Neither bar sets the water temperature.
- Can I use a delicate machine cycle for a hand-wash symbol?
- The hand in the tub directs you to hand wash. It is not the same instruction as the two-bar delicate machine symbol, even if your machine has a cycle named hand wash.
- Can I hand wash something marked do not wash?
- No. A crossed washtub forbids washing in water by machine or by hand. Follow the garment's other care symbols for the permitted cleaning route.